Social media platforms and revolutions

… in cases where there are no tools of communication, people still get together. So I don’t see that as being… in looking at history, I don’t see the absence of efficient tools of communication as being a limiting factor on the ability of people to socially organize – Malcolm Gladwell

 

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Joji was born and grew up in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. He graduated with a B.Sc in Biochemistry in Germany, and is now pursuing a Masters degree in Microbiology & Immunology at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich, Switzerland . Joji is particularly interested in matters related to global health, and basic science research that tackles public health challenges. He is engaged in mentoring Tanzanian students in higher education issues, most notably at the Kibaha High School. In this capacity, Joji blogs with Vijana FM about scientific research and development, and how youth can gain greater access to higher learning.

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  1. So he’s saying Facebook isn’t as life-changing as everybody says it is. I agree with him, because if there is one thing the uprisings in the Middle East show, it’s that political reform was/is necessary.

    Contrary to public thought, I don’t think the uprisings show that due of these social media platforms, people can communicate in groups easily. As Gladwell mentions in this interview, people have mobilized en-masse long before these social networks existed.

    I would add, though, that for those very young proponents of Facebook as a “revolution starter”, we need to be careful how such technologies are made available to them. Just as these technologies are tools, they need to be used appropriately.

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